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This October, when you tune in to watch the Commonwealth Games in Delhi, you might notice something different about the faces of the Canadians competing. Some of them will be South Asian. While that won’t surprise field hockey fans, seeing South Asians representing Canada in other sports is something of a rarity.
While the final selections for the various Canadian teams have yet to be made, this year’s Canadian contingent is likely to have more South Asians then ever before.
For this issue’s cover story we spoke with five elite South Asian athletes who have been named or are likely to be named to go to Delhi and compete on the world stage.
Ontario’s Ken Pereira, who at 37 is a veteran of Canada’s national field hockey team, will be making his fourth Commonwealth Games appearance.
After having missed the 2006 Commonwealth Games because he had yet to obtain his Canadian citizenship, weightlifter Jasvir Singh became the first British Columbian weightlifter to go to the Olympics in 20 years when he qualified for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. This October will mark his first Commonwealth Games appearance and Singh is looking forward to representing Canada in India, the country where he was a former national champion.
Nanaimo, B.C.’s, Hirendra Bhartu, who is Canada’s national bowls champion and is currently ranked No. 22 in the world bowls professional league, will also be attending his first Commonwealth Games, as will national weightlifting champion Parm Phangura and up-and-coming wrestling sensation Arjan Bhullar.
While we’ll be cheering for all Canadian athletes this October, we’ll be paying particularly close attention to these and any other South Asians who have worked hard to earn a spot on the team.
With this issue we’re also excited to introduce tech expert Paul Gill, who joins Mehfil to help keep readers up to date on today’s fast changing world with his new column titled Technology. Read his thoughts on Apple’s iPad on page 76.
Enjoy!
- Minto Vig, Rana Vig
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